How do I make Panel always transparent like the Dock in GNOME 3?

Question

I'm using Ubuntu 17.10. I want the Panel to be always transparent instead of dynamic transparency.

Solution

You may use a GNOME shell extension called Dynamic Panel Transparency to achieve this.

1. Install the extension from the link above.
2. Reload the page. A settings icon should appear.
3. Click on the settings icon. A window should pop up.
4. Go to the "Background" tab and "Enable custom opacity".
5. Set low values for both "Maximized Opacity" and "Unmaximized Opacity".
   

Note: You may have to restart the shell/session to see the change. In an Xorg session press alt+f2, then type r and press enter. In a default Wayland session log out and log in again.

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_{Tested in an Xorg session, but not in a Wayland session.}

Comments

[ob2]

Have you tested this process? I tried to answer this question, but doesn't worked for me, transparency is only partial as Ubuntu Extension override some transparency level.

[pomsky]

@olivierb2 I tested in an Xorg session, but not in a Wayland session. works fine in Xorg. Have you logged out and log in again?

[ob2]

Okay, I was trying under Wayland only, maybe this is why.

[pomsky]

@olivierb2 I see. I have added a caveat to my answer.

[Val]

The extension works, but there's still an unwanted behavior. When window is maximized - half of the top panel is filled with colour and only the upper part is transparent. Any way to get rid of it?

[pomsky]

@Val That's a colour gradient effect, pretty sure can be fixed by tweaking the shell theme css. Please consider asking a new question.